The Orford String Quartet present an all-Beethoven program

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edward johnson building
faculty of music
university of foronto

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THE ORFORD STRING QUARTET

OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO

PRESENT AN ALL-BEETHOVEN PROGRAM

SATURDAY, MaRcH 3, 1984
WALTER HALL
8 P.M,

PROGRAM

Quartet No. 3 in D major, Op. 18,
no. 3 (before 1800)
Allegro
Andante con moto
Allegro - Maggiore
Presto

At the beginning of the nineteenth century few music publishers
would consider a single string quartet a viable commercial prop-
osition. Symphonies and concertos might be presented to the pub-
lic in this fashion, graced with their own opus number, but a
composer wishing to offer quartets for sale had to he prepared
to supply them in groups, usually of three to six. Beethoven's
Op. 18 quartets thus appeared in two sets of three, published

by the Viennese firm of Mollo. A correspondent of the Leipzig
journal, the Allgemeine Mustkalische Zeitung, reported briefly
in the August 1801 issue that among recent publications issued
in Vienna were some splendid works by Beethoven; "three of the
quartets give conclusive proof of his artistry but they need to
be played often and well for they are difficult to perform and
far from popular". This anonymous writer might have said, with
more justification, that. they were not written to pander to pop-
ular taste: it is clear that Beethoven did not address himself
lightly to the composition of his first quartets.

The order of the quartets as published (and as they are now num-
bered) does not reflect the order of composition and Marion Scott
has suggested that the most impressive works were chosen to head
the two sets. This perhaps explains the relegation of the D
major quartet (actually the first to be completed) to the third
position, and certainly the appearance of the C minor quartet as
the first work in the second set bears out this hypothesis since
it is without doubt the most forceful of the six works. In fol-
lowing this particular train of thought we might conclude that
Beethoven had certain reservations about the quality of the D
major work, but it seems more likely that he was aware that its
subdued nature ill fitted it for placement at the beginning of
the complete opus.

Quartet No. 3 in D major, Op. 18, no. 3 (cont.)

The first movement is expansive in design, a fact which one could
reasonably guess from a first hearing of the spacious opening mel-
ody. After such a beginning it is not surprising to discover that
Beethoven concerned himself more with maintaining a sense of con-

— tinuity than with problems of contrast. Contrasts there are but
they are deliberately minimized in the interests of greater co-
herence and this coherence is carried over into the development
section. This is deliberately uneventful, concentrating rather on
creating a sense of purposeful motion and allowing the broad artic-
ulation of the movement to be perceived without difficulty by the
listener. The second movement is close to a rondo in design al-
though the return of the opening lyric theme (a particuarly happy
invention) with its luxuriantly scored accompaniment is varied each
time. The scherzo does little to disturb the mood set up by the
two preceding movements so that the sense of the continuity ex-
tends throughout the whole composition.

‘Beethoven left extensive sketches for many of his compositions and
the existence of successive drafts of a particular movement can
often allow us the unique opportunity of watching the composer at
work. Without recourse to musical examples it is impossible to
demonstrate this evolutionary process but it is worth pointing out
that the initial concept of some of Beethoven's germinal themes

is unbelievably commonplace, at times even banal. The main theme
of the Presto of this quartet is a case in point; the 6/8 metre
and the driving rhythm of the final version are already present

in the earliest sketches but that is about all. Had Beethoven
continued with this first idea the Leipzig journal might have
reported differently about the popularity of the quartet; however,
it is doubtful whether today we would have the patience to sit
through anything so conventional and uninspired. As it is this

is probably the strongest movement of the quartet and moreover one
which provides the greatest contrast with the style of the remain-
der of the work. Even here Beethoven seems obsessed with the idea
of coherence and the texture of the coda produces the faintest rem-
iniscence of the opening movement, a subtle resonance which helps
to integrate this boisterous conclusion into the subdued world of
this whole quartet. - John Mayo

Quartet No. 11 in F minor, Op. 95 "serioso" (1810)
Allegro con brio
Allegretto ma non troppo
Allegro assai vivace ma serioso
Larghetto espressivo - Allegretto agitato

Composed in 1810, about a year after the relatively accessible
Op. 74, the quartetto serioso, Op. 95, puts Beethoven in the

role of strongman. Practically every page of the score shows

him avoiding the easy and the predictable - indeed, avoiding

what the age of Haydn and Mozart called good taste. Instead,

we hear him forcing the musical materials to conform to his

will. The result is quintessential Beethoven: vigorous, demonic,
surging, wrenching. It is also a work that responds poorly to
thematic analysis, as Beethoven seems more concerned with tex-
tures, harmonies, and key areas.

The characteristic gesture of the piece is a wrenching one: like
Atlas changing his grip, Beethoven forces the tonal centre up a
half-step. Now it is a curious fact that adjacent notes (say,

e and f) present one of the simplest, most obvious relationships,
but adjacent chords or keys (say, E major and F major) are very
difficult to reconcile in tonal music. Of course, Beethoven

has fallen partial victim to the world he helped spawn: his power
ful device has become commonplace to those assaulted by it in the
- works of subsequent composers, good and bad. (When Otello breaks
up the brawl, asserting his power by lifting an F-sharp chord

to G singlehandedly, his gesture is dramatically perfect, but
neither new nor rare). But it is surprisingly easy to recap-
ture the innocence that Beethoven shocked with his muscular mod-
ulations.

The first movement immediately sets the rules: the opening idea,
in octaves, presents both food for thought (and action:) in its
bottom d-flat, c, d-natural, but also establishes the charac-
teristic sound of "unison" swirling scales that will return at
Beethoven's most imperious moments. After an angular double-
dotted "response" subsides, the ‘cello bursts back in, not on

the expected tonic, but one half-step higher, on the "Neapolitan".
(The fact of a Neapolitan second statement is not revolutionary
itself - the "Appassionata" sonata and the second Razoumovsky
quartet begin with similar juxtapositions and indeed let the re-

Jationship colour their first movements. What is special about
this quartet is the force, the brutality of this and other jux-
tapositions. We are not being led; we are being dragged.) After
this Neapolitan has given way to a series of landings on the dom-
inant, C, and Beethoven has impressed the C upon us with swirling
fortissimo unison scales, he presents, quietly, his second subject
- not in C, but in its Neapolitan, D-flat: As if that weren't
assertion enough, he interrupts that presentation with fortissimo
unison scales, eventually on D-flat's Neapolitan, but first on the
Neapolitan of its dominant: As implied already, what is more re-
markable than the existence of these assertions, and the complex
of tonal and harmonic relationships they establish, is, first,
their demonic effect, and secondly, the amazing integration of
small-scale (motivic, thematic) and large-scale (harmonic, tonal)
patterns in this movement - in fact, in this quartet.

The second movement, an allegretto ma non troppo "Slow" movement,
presents two kinds of material: AB(A)BACoda, where B is a very
expressive chromatic fugue, "(A)" is a reminiscence of the opening
cello scale between the two fugue sections, and the Coda presents
a combination of A and B. The key of the movement, D major, is
very far from F, and sets up the simple shock at the start and the
elaborate link to the third movement at the end.

Beethoven connects these two movements, without pause, by building
chords around the note D, arriving at one very memorable diminished
chord, which will return. But this chord gets him not to f minor,
but only to c minor, so he presents the first section twice, in the
tonic only the second time: As this pseudo-scherzo (ma sertoso)
with two trios unfolds, it develops that the first "trio" or B
section will’ end in D major, like the second movement, giving
Beethoven the chance to use the same powerful built-in transition.
At the end of the following "scherzo" or A section, he follows the
final cadence with that same diminished chord still again, but this
time to lead "backwards", from f to D, the starting key of the
second B section. This use of a single chord - and it is quite a
recognizable ohjet sonore - in so many different contexts tends to
mitigate the fact that Beethoven is rewriting the rules of tonality
as he goes along, and with the same sort of bullheaded determination
that characterized the first movement.

It has not been possible to mention all the half-step, "Neapolitan" |
relationships, although they are mostly prominent enough. But

Beethoven leaves us no choice in the finale. First, the viola
colours the opening with its expressive c, d-flat, c. Next, the
first violin's high d-flat, b, c would be striking even without
the eerie doubling by the second violin. Third, the tune of the
allegretto keeps those notes resonating until all four instru-
ments, forttssimo, wrench their c's up to d-flats. This re-
lationship becomes especially poignant toward the end of the
allegretto, after the theme has dissolved, and before the F-
major, Allegro “happy ending" puts this rising chromatic
motion in a comforting if not innocent setting.

- Norman Rubin

INTERMISSION

Quartet No. 14 in C sharp minor, Op. 131 (1826)
Adagio ma non troppo e molto espressivo
Allegro molto vivace
Allegro moderato - Adagio
Andante ma non troppo e molto cantabile
Presto
Adagio quasi un poco andante
Allegro

The climactic uniqueness of the five string quartets composed by
Beethoven during the last years of his life has frequently been
emphasized. An attempt to make any comparative value judgement
among these works is hardly appropriate because it is bound to
be more or less subjective; nevertheless, there seems to be some
substance to the claim that the C# minor quartet stands out in
dramatic expressiveness. A dynamic and profound diversification
and exploitation of small motivic cells within the boundaries of
extreme concentration and concision contribute to maintain the
listener's intense interest throughout the lengthy work.

The score indicates no less than seven numbered movements; it
Should be noted, however, that No. 3 represents merely a short
recitative-like introduction to the subsequent variation section,
while the twenty eight measures of No. 6, marked Adagio quasi

m Andante, effectively prepare the Allegro movement of the
Finale.

The use of a wide range of artfully combined keys distributed
throughout the whole work was viewed by Beethoven's contemp-
oraries as a bold innovation. Today we may still be able to

Quartet No. 14 in C sharp minor, Op. 131 (cont.)

appreciate, for example, the surprising change from C# minor to D

major at the beginning of the second movement, although our more or

less considerable exposure to such phenomena as modulatory chrom-

-aticism and atonality seems to have mitigated to a certain extent
our sensitivity to key relations.

It is safe to assume that an audience faced with such a complex and
demanding work as the quartet under discussion will approach the
music with widely differing attitudes. Some listeners will be
mainly interested in the structural aspects of the composition;
possibly armed with a miniature score, they will enjoy recognizing
such features as the following:

No. 1, marked Adagio ma non troppo e molto espressivo, represents
a free fugue. The theme is melodically, (implied) harmonically,
rhythmically, and dynamically well profiled. It centres upon the
dominant. G# which serves at the beginning as the basis of the "up-
flexure" G#-B#-C#-A-G# and at the end as the basis of the 'down-
flexure' Gi#-F#-E-F#-G#. These two figures are welded by the over-
lapping inner "pendulum" A-G#-F#-A-G#-F# into a coherent melodic
line. In a regular exposition each of the four instruments enters
at a distance of four 2/2 measures to join in a polyphonic inter-
play gradually intensifying until it resolves into a long sustained
tonic triad.

Sharply contrasting with the first movement is No. 2; there the
Adagio is succeeded by an Allegro molto vivace, the key and mode

of C# minor by D major, the polyphonic texture by an essentially
homophonic one, and the 2/2 by a 6/8 metre serving as a framework
for extended commetric alternations between quarter and eighth
notes. Within this pattern occur occasionally groupings of con-
‘trasting forte and piano measures and, more conspicuously, a
sequence of harmonic frictions coupled with sforzatt placed contra-
metrically on the second halves of consecutive 6/8 measures.

In a similar vein our hypothetical analytically-minded listeners
will attempt (after a brief acquaintance with the aforementioned
recitative-like No. 3) to trace the ingeneous transformations

of the main theme unfolding in the Theme-and-Variation Movement

No. 4. Turning to the Presto Movement No. 5, they might be tempted
to investigate the opposition between the straightforwardness and

Quartet No. 14 in C sharp minor, op. 131 (cont. )

almost folk-like texture of this Scherzo with the subtle refine-
ment of the preceding variations. And hopefully encouraged by
the relatively umproblematic nature of the Presto they might

try to penetrate the complex structural edifice of the crowning
Finale.

To another type of listeners the music will serve as a vehicle
evoking a string of emotions and emotionally charged programatic
images. At first sight one might be inclined to associate such
listeners with music lovers rather than with professional
musicians. That this evaluation is, however, not at all just-
ified, is perhaps most clearly demonstrated by Richard Wagner's
interpretation of the work. Qn the occasion of a performance of
the quartet in Zurich he wrote in December 1854 a short intro-
duction in which he characterized the different movements as
follows:

Adagio: Schwernutige Morgenandacht eines tiefleidenden
Gemtites. (Melancholic morning devotion of a profoundly suffering
soul.

Allegro: Anmutige Erscheinung, neue Sehnsucht zum Leben
erwecken. (Graceful vision, inspiring new longing for life.)

Theme and Vartations: Reiz, Milde, Verlangen, Liebe.
(Charm, gentleness, desire, love.)

Scherzo: Laune, Humor, Ausgelassenheit. (Caprice, humour,
exuberance. )

Finale: Ubergang zur Resignation. Schmerzlichstes Entsagen.
(Transition toward resignation. Most grievous renunciation. )

Sixteen years later Wagner expanded and moulded this outline into
a colourful interpretation of the psychological content of the
quartet, likening it to the innermost happenings in a day of
Beethoven's life.

Although the two aforementioned listening approaches seem to be
essentially different from each other, they are in fact basically
complementary and reflect the intimate correlation between
musical structure and expressive content. It is precisely the

Quartet No. 14 in C sharp minor, Op. 131 (cont.)

structural perfection of this quartet that generates the depth and
breadth of its expressiveness.

- Mieczyslaw Kolinski

~ THE ORFORD STRING QUARTET of the University of Toronto stands

proudly among the world's top ten chamber music ensembles, a

unit of impressive calibre, of truly great artistry. The Quartet
is made up of four exceptional young Canadian musicians: violinists
ANDREW DAWES and KENNETH PERKINS, violist TERENCE HELMER and |
cellist DENIS BROTT. It is a testament to the talent and dedic-
ation of each that when the Quartet performs, the individuals
disappear and only their total merger into music remains. The
Quartet grew out of Les Jeunesses Musicales summer camp at

Mount Orford, Quebec. It is now a veteran of tour after tour -

_the length and breadth of Europe, Canada the United States, the

U.S.S.R. and the Orient, often under the auspices of the Canada
Council and the Department of External Affairs.

Next events:

March 9 and 10, 1984, 8 p.m.

The Opera Division presents

'Sir John in Love', by R. Vaughan-Williams
MacMillan Theatre, $8., Students, seniors $5.
Box Office - 978-3744

Sunday, March 11, 3 p.m.
Helen Bowkun, piano
Walter Hall, free